"Amazon Parrots Species"

Amazons first went shipboard with Christopher Columbus. He brought them back to Spain following his first trip to the New World. On a well-supplied ship, a seafaring parrot could do well, eating the same food as his shipmates. No doubt, they sometimes wound up in the pot when supplies were low, or rendered inedible due to vermin.

Amazons are one of the most popular parrots in the pet trade. Before the CITES ban on importation, they were shipped North by the thousands, depleting the birds in their natural environment. Today, smuggling is still a problem with all parrot species. For example, the Mexican Red-Headed Amazon, also known as the Green Cheeked Amazon, is considered threatened in its native country. However, a flock of several hundred birds roams the county in San Diego; breaking up in small feeding groups during the day, and gathering in the evening into one huge, noisy flock in the eucalyptus trees sheltering a trailer court in El Cajon.

Flocks of Green Cheeked Amazons can be found throughout California; obviously thriving and reproducing.

There are 27 species of Amazon parrot, ranging in size from the small White Fronted, or Spectacled Amazon, to the large Mealy Amazon. There are also subspecies, such as the Tres Marias and Magna Amazons. Coloration and size may vary, but they are both Amazona ochrocephala, the Double Yellow Head.

Spectacled Amazons are one of the smallest of the genus, only 10 inches from beak to tail. It’s also one of two Amazons that are sexually dimorphic, that is, the males’ plumage varies from that of the females’. The other sexually dimorphic Amazon is the Yellow Lored Amazon. Other Amazons have to be genetically or surgically sexed to verify their gender. Some people assert that male Amazons have a flatter skull. Compared to female Yellow Napes, my male definitely looks different. The females I’ve seen have more of a domed shape to their heads. If he were bigger, you could use my Cass as an end table to set your drink on.

In contrast to the tiny Spectacled Amazon, the Mealy is Birdzilla. This robust bird measures around 15 inches stem to stern, and is, ironically, one of the more peaceful members of the genus.

Amazons have several unique, fascinating features. While most of these birds are predominantly green, they turn blackish when wet. That’s because their feathers aren’t actually green at all! The green in their feathers is due to the fact that they reflect only the green wavelength back to our eyes. This is also seen in the feathers of blue jays; their feather color isn’t due to pigment, but lightwave refraction. Both types of birds exhibit an iridescence, shifting light makes the feathers change color. You can easily see this by holding your Amazon in sunlight. Their green feathers shift through the spectrum. It’s a most wonderful thing to behold in a healthy bird!

An extremely rare blue Yellow Naped Amazon has been recorded. This bird is as blue as a jay, as a result of a mutation, which reflects blue. This is due to a lack of yellow oils within the bird’s plumage. The owner is trying to breed a line of blue Amazons, by selecting other birds with a quantity of blue feathers. Such a bird would be extremely expensive!

Another curious fact about Amazon plumage is the ultraviolet reflectivity of their yellow and red feathers. It’s well known that many birds can see the UV wavelength our poor monkey eyes can’t detect. We can only imagine the world through a bird’s eyes.

A kestrel, one of the small falcons, can see the ultraviolet trail left by mouse urine, as the small rodents leave a piddling line in the grass to mark their passing.

Amazons use this special vision for another purpose, identifying each other in the dense rain forest in which they live. It’s said that feathers, sunscreen, and fingernail polish that reflect UV light virtually glow. This may explain why people with fingernail polish sometimes get an unexplained bite from a pet bird. You can imagine a bird’s reaction to a glowing human slathered in sunscreen and decorated with fingernail polish! It must be a terrifying sight!

Amazons differ from other parrots, too, by lacking a uropygial gland, or commonly called, ‘preening gland.’ That’s the oil-producing gland birds use to waterproof and dress their feathers. Instead, Amazons rely on powder down and bathing to keep their feathers in tip-top condition. The only other members of the parrot clan to lack the uropygial gland are the blue macaws, such as the Hyacinth and its close relatives.

After much whining and wiggling, I determined that Casanova does, in fact, lack a preen gland! Following that inspection, I decided to probe him for nuggets. A fast food commercial asserts that chickens don’t have nuggets. Neither do Amazons, and they will bite you if you try to locate them!

Another communication tool used by Amazons is the eye flash. This is an indication of excitement, anger or fear. Like humans, Amazons rely a lot on body language to communicate. The eye flash, coupled with a fanned tail and droopy wings, indicates a state of high excitement. This display reveals the UV reflective patches of feathers, and can be coupled with a slow, stalking tread around the cage. Beak wiping shows extreme excitement. An Amazon in full display is a beautiful, yet terrifying sight. Do not try to handle a bird in this state, you will be bitten!

When a hawk is lurking around the back yard, Cass will make a low, purring noise in combination with a flashing eye. The low sound carries throughout the house quite well, and his flashing eyes are truly a beacon. You can spot that flash twenty feet away. The advantage to this low-key warning is obvious. Predatory birds feed on parrots in the wild. A crazy display of glowing feathers and loud squawking would simply be an advertisement to “Dine Here, Good Eats!” I can certainly imagine a flock of parrots, scattered about in a few trees, communicating danger with soft sounds and flashing eyes, as they wait for the threat to move on. The flash itself is due to the Amazon’s ability to constrict its pupils voluntarily.

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